Military Review English Edition March-April 2016 | Page 96

fully integrating the reconnaissance squadron into the
joint fight during a forcible entry operation.
According to current practice, the reconnaissance
squadron conducts an airborne assault without the
majority of its vehicles—that is, during the assault
phase of a forcible entry. The squadron relies on those
vehicles to arrive later, on “heavy-drop” parachute
platforms or on aircraft that land after an airhead is
secure. Because the squadron is task-organized with
two mounted troops and one dismounted reconnaissance troop, essentially two-thirds of the squadron’s
combat power is unavailable during initial combat
operations. This practice deprives the ground force
commander of a unique asset. By design, the reconnaissance squadron can quickly reconnoiter more ar XB